


A Long Time Coming

by aces_mild



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Underswap (Undertale), Drabble, Established Relationship, Fluff, Gen, Humor, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-01
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 00:47:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24495967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aces_mild/pseuds/aces_mild
Summary: You've been dating Papyrus for upwards of five years. You love him, and you know he loves you back, but the guy's a world-class procrastinator and doesn't seem to have any intention of proposing. You decide to take matters into your own hands. Turns out the two of you are on the same page - even more so than you thought.
Relationships: Papyrus (Underswap) / Reader
Comments: 3
Kudos: 57





	A Long Time Coming

It’s mid-morning, and your boyfriend, Papyrus, is unsurprisingly still asleep. You always get up before him, and while you’re usually content to let him sleep in for as long as he wants, today’s a little different. 

You walk over to the window and open the blinds, letting in the sunlight. Papyrus groans, and throws an arm over his face. 

You giggle, and sit down on his side of the bed. He shifts his arm slightly to look at you with one squinted eye-socket.

“Good morning, lazy-bones,” you say fondly.

“g’mornin’.” 

“It’s time to get up! Big day today!” you remind him, leaning down to press a light kiss to his forehead.

He puts a hand on the back of your neck and pulls you in for a much deeper kiss, one that leaves magic tingling on your lips. You know what he’s trying to do - he uses this trick all the time, slowly pulling you into bed beside him, delaying any plans you may have. 

But it won’t work! Not today. You slip out of his grasp and stand, excitement making you giddy. “Up! Come on, we’ve got places to be and sights to see!”

Papyrus looks disappointed, but only for a moment. He starts to shift, pushing the heavy comforter to the side. “alright, alright…”

“You’ve got half an hour! I’m gonna go put together something resembling lunch!”

You practically jog out the door, leaving Papyrus to get dressed for your day out. He throws on his usual cargo pants and sweatshirt, and spends an absurd amount of time lacing up a pair of hiking boots you’d bought him for this exact occasion. Then, after checking to make sure you’re still in the kitchen, he slides open the closet door and pulls down a ragged old backpack. He rustles around inside it for a moment before pulling out a small, ornate wooden box. He flips the lid open, giving the ring inside a once-over. 

Butterflies gather in the stomach he doesn’t have, and for a brief moment he considers leaving it behind...but no. He’s been putting this off for far too long. Hell, the two of you had been dating for five years already! Your relationship was as solid as it was gonna get. You’d even talked about getting married before, so it’s not like he was worried you’d say no. 

Papyrus closes the box and puts it in one of the many pockets of his cargo pants before going to join you in the kitchen.

He leans casually on the doorframe and watches as you pack a few small sandwiches and several snacks into a vintage picnic basket. He remembers how delighted you’d been when you’d found it at the thrift store. The look in your eyes when you’d thought about using it had been priceless, and he was thrilled to see it again now. 

You were never more attractive to him than when you were happy.

You hand him the picnic basket so you can put on your own hiking boots. You throw on a jacket, hat, and scarf, and the two of you head out, storing the picnic basket in the back seat of the car.

\--

The whole way there, you can’t keep yourself from singing along to whatever upbeat song is playing. When a less cheerful tune comes up on the playlist, you ask Papyrus to skip it. 

Papyrus isn’t used to sitting in the passenger seat - he’s usually the one who does the driving. It was his car, after all. But he had no idea where you were taking him today, so you were the one at the wheel. Still, it gives him a good opportunity to just...look at you. In fact, for the entire two-hour drive, he can’t take his eyes off you. 

\--

You pull into the nearly-empty parking lot of a small park up in the mountains. You practically jump out of the car, ready to explore familiar trails for the first time in years. You leave the picnic basket in the car - that’s for later - and head out onto the trails, holding tight to Papyrus’s hand. 

You know this park like it’s your own backyard. You used to come here all the time, before you moved out to Ebott City. You grew up in these mountains, in this backwoods place. 

You miss it. 

Seeing it again makes you happy, sure, but there’s also a twinge of nostalgia, a small bit of soreness in seeing how much it’s changed since you were a child.

Still, you find it easy to put that aside. After all, there’s so much for you to show Papyrus! You know all the best places - the natural staircase, the waterfalls, and, of course, the scenic overlook! The scenery would be wonderful - it was the height of autumn, so forest and the valley below would be filled with color! 

\--

When you reach the scenic overlook, you stop. You need a minute to recover. 

“everything alright, hun?” Papyrus asks, squeezing your hand in his.

“Yes! It’s just...different from how I remember it.” 

You explain to him how the valley used to be farmland, with cornfields and cows. Now, the farm is abandoned, the buildings already being reclaimed by nature. The fields are completely wild, filled with long golden grasses swaying in the breeze, complimented by the deep reds and vibrant oranges of the forested mountains beyond. 

“I like it better this way, I think.”

The two of you take a seat on a nearby stone bench, and Papyrus drapes his arm over your shoulders. You lean into him, both of you content to take in the scenery in companionable silence. 

The weight of the small box in Papyrus’s pocket distracts him from the view. He knows he could ask right then and there, and it would be perfect, but...he’s not ready. Not just yet. Besides, he doesn’t want to interrupt the moment. 

He’s going to ask you today. He’s already decided on that. You’ve given him the perfect opportunity, and he’d have to be some sort of idiot to pass it up. He still has time.

\--

The two of you return to the car and get the picnic basket. There’s a small lake nearby, where you set out a blanket and have your prepared lunch. It’s nothing special - neither of you are all that good at cooking, and tend to eat junk food most of the time - but it’s the company that’s important. 

Papyrus picks your brain about the park, wondering why you’d never mentioned this place before.

“Oh, no reason...I haven’t been here in so long, I went and forgot it existed! I’m glad I finally remembered...I’ve missed this place.”

“care to share some memories?” 

You nod, and think for a moment. Then, beaming, you point to a hill on the other side of the lake. 

“We used to sled down that hill over there every winter.”

“that one? really? yeesh...isn’t it a bit steep?”

“Sure is! It was super dangerous. Kids got hurt all the time, but that didn’t stop us. It was like...some kind of rite of passage, I guess.” 

Papyrus listens, thoroughly amused, as you tell him several stories from your childhood, like the time you protected your friend from a particularly irate goose, and that one spring when you and your cousins went hunting for teeny-tiny frogs. He can’t help but be happy that there’s still so much to learn about you, even after being together for so long. 

\--

On the way back to the car, you stop abruptly, dropping the now-empty picnic basket on the ground and running up to a stand of aspen trees. 

“Look! My friends and I made these!” You say, running a hand over the letters carved into the white wood. Your own initials are there, surrounded by those of your close friends from high school. 

“how’d you write those?”

“With a pocket knife. People do it all the time.” as evidence, you point out all the other trees nearby with words and initials written on them. “I do feel kinda bad about it, though. Poor trees...”

“don’t worry about it, hun. it’s just a tree.” 

You stomp your food in indignation. “Still!” You reach out and wrap your arms around the nearest aspen. “I’m sorry, tree!”

Papyrus can’t help but crack up. “you’re so weird,” he muses, pulling you away from the tree and guiding your arms to wrap around him instead. 

“Sure am!” you say proudly, grinning up at him.

He wouldn’t have you any other way.

\--

Your next stop is a quaint little town at the bottom of the mountain, with a whole street of mom-and-pop shops. You hit up a small occult shop, filled to the brim with crystals and tarot cards and hand-made clothes. The two of you try to resist the temptation of an old-fashioned candy store, but inevitably fail and wind up with about fifty dollars’ worth of assorted sweets. 

Towards the evening, you lead Papyrus to your true destination - a ramshackle old bookstore that you know he’ll adore.

At first glance, the interior seems disorganized. The isles are laid out like a maze, with tables and armchairs scattered around and hidden nooks for secluded reading. All the books look well-worn and well-loved. The downstairs floor is filled with old records, CD’s, and VHS tapes. There’s a loft that, while mostly for kids, is still really charming. 

As you’d expected, Papyrus loves it! He’s always been a bit of a bookworm, and the old-timey style of the store makes him feel at home. He walks away with an armful of books to add to his shelf.

That this place made you think of him to such an extent that you simply  _ had _ to bring him here...it makes his soul warm. 

\-- 

As the sky darkens, the two of you wander out of town towards a river nearby, walking along a dirt path by an old water mill. Hand in hand, you walk out onto a bridge and stare down at the rippling water. 

“Be honest, did you have a good time today?” you ask, realizing that this trip may have been a tad self-indulgent.

“‘course.” Papyrus answers casually, though sincerely. “i had a great time.”

“Really?”

“really.” Papyrus leans down, pressing his teeth to your cheek in a sweet skeleton kiss. 

“Good! I wanted it to be perfect…”

“oh?” Papyrus would be raising an eyebrow if he had them. Instead, it’s his brow-bone that shifts. “why’s that?”

You stuff your hands into your pockets and stare harder at the water below. “Because...well...I know we’ve talked about this before...and I kinda think we’re on the same page about it...but I really wanted to get this just right...since I can only do this once, y’know?”

Papyrus’s nonexistent stomach flips. There’s no way…

Even in the dark, the blush overtaking your face is obvious. You’re nervous, rambling and starting to sweat despite the chill. “I’ve sorta been putting this off for a while...not because of doubts or anything, I just...wanted to be sure I was really ready, and all...and, uh...I think I am.” You pull a small box out of your coat pocket. “I hope you are, too.” 

Papyrus just stares, his own face radiant with an orange blush. His silence makes you wonder if maybe you’d been wrong, that you weren’t really on the same page...but then he bursts into laughter, bending nearly double, clutching at his ribs.

He reaches into his pants pocket and pulls out his own tiny box, placing it on the bridge railing. Suddenly understanding, you start laughing right along with him!

“i can’t believe you beat me to it…”

“Oh, it’s not  _ that _ surprising,” you point out. “You’re a notorious procrastinator.”

“guilty as charged,” he says guiltily. 

“I don’t mind you taking your time.” You reach up, placing your hands on either side of his skull, and pull him in for a kiss. You rest your forehead against his, eye-to-eye socket, and whisper, “I’m not going anywhere.”

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like the only person alive who has a real soft spot for Underswap Papyrus. I feel he gets left out a lot...Anyway, thanks for reading! Lemme know how you liked it!
> 
> One-Shot inspired by the song Bloom by The Paper Kites. Give it a listen!


End file.
